


The Care and Keeping Of

by Not2be



Category: Silicon Valley (TV)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Self Care, Self-Destructive Behavior, Support, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, these boys need to sleep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 14:37:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14771547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Not2be/pseuds/Not2be
Summary: Jared is concerned about Richard. Richard is concerned about Jared. Or, Jared and Richard have difficulties with self-care.





	The Care and Keeping Of

**Author's Note:**

> Quick little warning: an unhealthy relationship with food/not eating is mentioned. Also, Gilfoyle makes a bad joke sort of about eating disorders. 
> 
> This has been siting on my computer for a while, I’ve gotten sick of trying to re-write it so here it is. Hope you enjoy, thanks for reading!

Richard could tell Jared was steeling himself for something; nervous eyes darting between him and the road, mouth turned down in a concerned frown. Jared’s long fingers at ten and two clenched and unclenched the wheel. _Fuck._

“Spit it out Jared.” He rubs the heels of his hands over his eyes tiredly. 

 Jared cleared his throat. “Um. Okay. Richard, we need to talk.”

Richard slumped in his seat a little, dreading that phrase. “Uh, sure, Jared. What is it?”

Jared’s gaze was now solely focused on the road and not Richard’s nervous twitching.

“I bring this up because I think it is a matter of company welfare but if you think I am, overstepping my professional bounds then please hear what I have to say as a friend.” _Double fuck_.

“Richard, you’re not sleeping and not only is this self-destructive behavior hazardous to you-” Richard tries to cut him off, but Jared valiantly continues.

“Not only is it unhealthy for you but in my professional opinion it is a liability to Pied Piper. It is negatively impacting your working relationship with your employees as well as your personal friendships”

Richard groaned and rolled his eyes “Who could it possibly be affecting besides-”

“Dinesh, Gilfoyle…and myself” he added meekly.

The CEO crossed his arms feeling defensive “You’re wrong Jared, besides I’m being more productive, its fine.”

“I respectfully disagree. I wouldn’t bring this up if I didn’t think it was a pressing issue and if I wasn’t concerned-”

“No offense Jared, but I don’t need a mom” Richard snaps.

 _Breathe Donald_ “I understand you that feel like I’m nagging, that’s not my intention. I’m trying to be a good coworker and a good friend Richard. I respect your autonomy, but I only ever want to help you and Pied Piper-” Richard begins to protest again and Jared pulls the car over.

“Please let me finish Richard then you can do with the information what you will, and I’ll respect that.” Richard goes silent as Jared takes a deep breath.

“I won’t ask you why because I don’t wish to be intrusive and…I understand the impulse. At Vassar I once went three days without sleeping because…well, I suppose I didn’t feel I was being productive enough.” _I didn’t deserve sleep._ “And another time I showed up late to one of my favorite professor’s lectures and he looked at me so disappointedly so… I went four days with out eating.” Richard was very still beside him, so he continued while he still had the nerve.

“And you know what? It didn’t help anything. Not sleeping did not make me more productive, in fact the opposite. I did less quality work and I even mistook a rabid racoon for an adorable alley cat. Not eating didn’t make up for my tardiness and it didn’t atone for my professor’s disappointment. I actually became more of burden when I passed out in my dorm and my roommate had to step over me to get to his bed.”

“He…just left you there.”

“Oh, no. His girlfriend eventually convinced him to take me to medical services on campus. They were great.” Jared responded brightly before his tone got serious again. “I don’t do things like that anymore not because I don’t have the impulse to do them but because…they’re not functional.” The last part sounds like a practiced mantra.

“Okay Jared…I..I’ll get some sleep tonight.” Jared looked at him with his big blue Disney princess eyes looking genuinely relieved.

“Oh, that’s splendid, thank you for listening to what I had to say Richard.” _Your SWOT analysis was right, Donald!_ He had agonized over brining this up with Richard once and for all.

They pulled back out on the road in a companionable silence. Richard had a lot to think about.

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They’re sitting at their computers and Richard knows he should be focused but he can’t stop staring at Jared.

“Jared?”

“Yyyyess, Richard” He says lifting his head slightly while his eyes finished scanning something on his computer, fingers still posed over the key board. He then looks up at Richard, hands folded, ready to give him his full attention; a picture of attentiveness and eager devotion.

“When’s the last time you ate?” Richard blurts before he can really process he has.

“Oh. Um, lets see” He looks slightly surprised he can’t recall immediately. “When was it we all had Thai together?”

“Shit dude, that was Tuesday.” Dinesh says looking up. It is currently Thursday. Richard feels a pit in his stomach. Jared’s already, what did he say, 45 pounds underweight? He can’t really afford to lose anymore.

“Are you jealous of starving Anne Frankenstein’s physic over here? It’s easy, all the cool girls are doing it.” Gilfoyle deadpans at Dinesh.

“Fuck you”

“Brilliant retort as usual” They carry on arguing into the kitchen.

When they’re finally alone Richard continues in a slightly hushed voice.

“When’s the last time you slept?” Jared looks exhausted not TechCrunch exhausted but still pretty bad. He has dark bruise like circles under his eyes and he looks pale (or paler).

Jared looks away embarrassed. “Not that long ago” _I should be dragged through the street for trying to obfuscate the truth from Richard, My Captain-_

“Yeah, that’s not really an answer though is it?”

“I’m being a hypocrite aren’t I” _but you’re important._

Richard tries another tactic. “Why aren’t you sleeping, man?”

“Nightmares mostly” He shrugs.

“Mostly?”

“Yes, also work…”

“Listen dude, you could take a nap in my room and I can work in there and if you have a nightmare, well I can…” He didn’t actually know what to do in that situation, but he’d be there.

It seemed almost too much to Jared, too indulgent to have someone to willingly be there for him, to have Richard Hendrick’s warm safe presence there while he was his most vulnerable. His hand went up to his chest.

“That would be too much to ask-” “You’re not asking I’m offering- insisting”

When Jared finally woke up Richard was standing there awkwardly with a glass of water.

“Um. Here. I was uh gonna cook something, but Dinesh and Gilfoyle laughed at me for like 10 minutes about how I was a bad house wife that was gonna burn the house down, so I figured I could just like get you a bowel of cereal when you’re ready.” He rubs at his neck self-consciously.

“Oh, thank you Richard! And outdated sexist architypes aside I’m sure you’d be a wonderful house keeper and host” he most assuredly would not, but Richard smiled none the less. He blushed at the thought that Jared looked cute when he was waking up.

“So…we’re quite the pair aren’t we” The COO sits down at the edge of the mattress.

“I’m very sorry about this Richard.” He looks at his lap holding the half drunken glass of water.

“It’s okay Jared, at least you’re trying. I thought about what you said and…I’m gonna try harder too.”

Jared smiles up at him, but his eyes are sad. Richard doesn’t know he does that, how he can be so bright and encouraging and somehow melancholy at the same time.  Richard isn’t good at talking about this stuff, but he wants to try for Jared.

“I just get so overwhelmed I can hardly take care of myself sometimes and you, you’re great at taking care of _others_ but you-”

Jared shuts his eyes, he was supposed to be getting better he was supposed to- _shut that window, Donald._

“Maybe we could you know…help each other?” He looks back up at the man nervously playing with the strings on his hoodie. As always Jared feels a mixture of things. Gratitude, and pride towards Richard but also shame and anxiety. If Richard will sally forth so shall he.

“Yes, I think that might be a wonderful idea, Richard.”


End file.
